The present invention relates to a communication unit position detecting system for detecting the position of a wireless communication unit to be searched in a wireless network system employing a non-directional communication medium such as an electric wave and to a recording medium that stores a communication unit position detecting program.
Conventionally, there have been proposed various devices for searching a unit of a remote controller or the like of which the location is not found in a wireless communication system.
For example, the prior art reference of Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. HEI 10-257571 discloses a system that includes one of a vibrating means, a sound producing means such as a buzzer, a light emitting means such as a lamp on the unit side where the remote controller or the like is located and operates to transmit a specified signal of an electric wave from the equipment side by a wireless communication means, receive this signal by the wireless communication means on the device side and effect the operation of vibrating the vibration means, buzzing or lighting the lamp on the basis of this received signal, thereby informing the user of the location of the unit by the sense of touch, the sense of hearing and the sense of sight (this being referred to as a first prior art technique).
The prior art reference of Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. HEI 10-79987 discloses a system that includes a sound producing means such as a buzzer on the unit side where a remote controller or the like is located and operates to select a specified signal among a plurality of types of signals by a wireless communication means from the equipment side, transmit the signal by an electric wave, receive this specified signal by the wireless communication means on the unit side and effect the operation of buzzing when the received specified signal coincides with a signal set in the self unit. This allows the user to be informed of the location of the remote controller to be searched even when there is a plurality of remote controllers (this being referred to as a second prior art technique).
However, the aforementioned first and second prior art techniques have the problem that, if a plural number of persons search different devices in an identical place in response to a plurality of units concurrently vibrating, producing sound or emitting light, then there is caused the confusion of the persons who cannot specify the devices to be searched.
The present invention has been made in order to solve the aforementioned problem and has the object of providing a communication unit position detecting system capable of reliably finding the unit to be searched by a plural number of persons who search the devices even when the persons search different devices in an identical place as well as a recording medium that stores a recorded communication unit position detecting program.
In order to achieve the object, there is provided a communication unit position detecting system having a plurality of communication units connected to one another by way of a wireless network, wherein
one communication unit comprises a wireless communication means for putting wireless communication into practice, a timing pattern generating means for generating a specified timing pattern and a control means for controlling an informing device in accordance with an arbitrary timing, another communication unit comprises a wireless communication means for putting wireless communication into practice, a timing pattern analyzing means for analyzing a transmitted specified timing pattern and a control means for controlling an informing device in accordance with the analyzed timing,
the one communication unit generates a specified timing pattern by the timing pattern generating means, controlling the informing device in accordance with the generated timing, transmitting the generated timing pattern to another communication unit by the wireless communication means, and another communication unit receives the timing pattern transmitted from the one communication unit by the wireless communication means and controlling the informing device in accordance with the timing pattern analyzed by the timing pattern analyzing means.
With this arrangement, by searching another communication unit that is operating in accordance with the same timing as the operation timing of the informing device of one communication unit, the location of the currently communicating opposite communication unit can be detected by the five senses of the human being. It is merely required to search the communication unit that is operating in accordance with the same timing as that of the self communication unit, and therefore, if a plural number of persons concurrently search different communication units in an identical place, then each person can reliably find the communication unit to be searched.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the informing device of the one communication unit is one of a light emitting device such as an LCD or a lamp, a vibrating device such as a vibrator and a sound producing device such as a buzzer, and the informing device of another communication unit is one of a light emitting device such as an LCD or a lamp, a vibrating device such as a vibrator and a sound producing device such as a buzzer.
This allows the location of the currently communicating opposite communication unit to be detected by one of the sense of touch, the sense of hearing and the sense of sight of the human being.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the light emitting device is comprised of a device that can emit a plurality of colors and the control means executes switching control of the color of light to be emitted according to the generated timing pattern.
This allows the location of the currently communicating opposite communication unit to be detected by the sense of sight of the human being.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the communication unit has a plurality of informing devices and is provided with a selection means for arbitrarily selecting the informing device to be used.
Also, there is provided a communication unit position detecting system having a plurality of communication units connected to one another by way of a wireless network, wherein
one communication unit comprises a fragrance generating means for generating a specified fragrance and a transmission means for transmitting information of the type of the generated fragrance, and another communication unit comprises a reception means for receiving information of the type of the transmitted fragrance and a display means for displaying information of the type of the received fragrance.
This allows the location of the currently communicating opposite communication unit to be detected by the sense of smell of the human being.
Also, there is provided a communication unit position detecting system having a plurality of communication units connected to one another by way of a wireless network, wherein
one communication unit comprises a wind generating means for generating a flow of air and a transmission means for transmitting wind information representing the occurrence of the flow of air, and another communication unit comprises a reception means for receiving the transmitted wind information and a display means for displaying the received wind information.
This allows the location of the currently communicating opposite communication unit to be detected by the sense of touch of the human being.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the one communication unit is provided with a wind generating source direction detecting means for detecting the direction of the wind generating source generated by the one communication unit.
This allows the location of the currently communicating opposite communication unit to be automatically detected.
Also, there is provided a communication unit position detecting system having a plurality of communication units connected to one another by way of a wireless network, wherein
one communication unit comprises a heat generating means for generating heat and a transmission means for transmitting heat information representing the occurrence of heat, and another communication unit comprises a reception means for receiving the transmitted heat information and a display means for displaying the received heat information.
This allows the location of the currently communicating opposite communication unit to be detected by the effective temperature of the human being.
In an embodiment of the present invention, another communication unit is provided with a heat source direction detecting means for detecting the direction of the source of heat generated by the one communication unit.
This allows the location of the currently communicating opposite communication unit to be automatically detected.
Also, there is provided a communication unit position detecting system having a plurality of communication units connected to one another by way of a wireless network, wherein
one communication unit comprises a timing pattern generating means for generating a specified timing pattern, a first wireless communication means for transmitting the generated timing pattern by a non-directional communication means and a second wireless communication means for transmitting the generated timing pattern by a directional communication means, and another communication unit comprises a first wireless communication means for receiving a non-directional electric wave, a second wireless communication means for receiving a directional electric wave and a pattern detecting means for comparing the timing patterns of the two types of electric waves received by the wireless communication means and outputting a coincidence signal when both the patterns coincide with each other.
This allows the location of the currently communicating opposite communication unit to be automatically detected.
Also, there is provided a recording medium in which a communication unit position detecting program to be executed by a computer is recorded, wherein the program comprises:
a process for generating a specified timing pattern by a timing pattern generating means,
a process for controlling an informing device in accordance with the generated timing pattern,
a process for transmitting the generated timing pattern by a wireless communication means, and
a process for receiving the transmitted timing pattern by the wireless communication means and controlling the informing device in accordance with a timing pattern analyzed by a timing pattern analyzing means.